The Journey to Mordor
by Andy Thompson - Queen of Hell
Summary: Rosemary has always been more or less average until one day when the Fellowship of the Ring shows up, informing her that the entire fate of present day and past Middle-Earth rests in her hands and she is the only one who can save them all.
1. The Truth Part I

I woke up, starting my morning routine just like I did on any other typical day. I got ready for school. I ate breakfast. I went to school. Perhaps I would have spent a little more time making myself presentable, had I known what was going to happen on that day. But that's the thing: I didn't know.  
It all started during the passing period between third and fourth. I was talking with my friend until we got to the intersection of the two busiest hallways in the school. At that point it just . . . happened . . . In the blink of an eye. I had no time to think, no time to process what was going on. Everyone in the school was gone and standing in there place was five little people and three tall people, all of whom looked oddly familiar to me. We stood there, staring at each other, and then I realized who (and what) they were.  
"Oh dear holy god," I said, taking a panicked little step back at the realization, "You're the . . . the . . . The Fellowship of the Ring! Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin, Gimli, Legolas, Aragorn, Gandalf and . . . not Boromir . . . he's dead."  
"Gandalf, how does she know our names? How does she know of Boromir?" Frodo demanded.  
"Oh, I know of everything," I answered, feeling slightly more confident now, but definitely confused about having the Fellowship standing in front of me. I decided to just go with it, for now. It was probably a dream anyway and I would be waking up soon, so I should just make the best of it. "I know of the Shire, I know of what happened in Moria, I know of Bilbo, I know of the Black Riders, of the Enemy, I know of how you, Frodo son of Drogo, destroyed the Ring."  
"Gandalf, how does she know of all this?" Legolas asked, looking uncertainly at me.  
Do you all remember the story I once told you about the child that would be born as a mixture of all the races of Middle-Earth?" Gandalf asked, not looking at any of them as they glanced at each other, but looking straight at me, making me uncomfortable.  
Are you meaning to tell us that she is that child?" Aragorn spoke up.  
Yes indeed. You are all looking at Rosemary, the girl who is hobbit, Elf, Man, Dwarf, and wizard."  
Wait a minute. I'm part of all the races of Middle-Earth?" I asked.  
"Yes . . . Actually, the first to be born with all races blood in you." Gandalf simply said.  
But . . . This is definitely my weirdest dream yet. I mean, you're all characters from The Lord of the Rings. I'm just a teenage girl in America. And characters don't come alive. So yeah. This must all be a dream. Middle-Earth was never real. It's just a fantasy."  
Rosemary," Gandalf said, "You're in the very same place that Middle-Earth once was. The only difference is that it has a different name. The time have changed the names of races, too, not just the land. Those short people you call midgets, they're really hobbits and Dwarfs. You all think you're the race of Men. But hidden among you, wizard and Elves are still very much alive, whether they know it or not."  
I had no idea what to think. I was still a little confused with what was going on.  
Why are you here though? Why did this happen? Where are my friends? What about everyone else in America?"  
If you want your friends and family back, Rosemary, you're going to have to travel to the modern-day Mordor. It is probable that it will be a very well known city these days." Gandalf said.  
I took a deep breath and thought about this. I really wanted everyone back. And Gandalf's way of doing so was probably the only way of getting them back, whether I wanted to do it or not. "Will you all accompany me on this?"  
Of course." Gandalf said.  
"You have my axe." Gimli answered.  
"You have my bow." Legolas added.  
"You have my sword." Aragorn put in.  
"Well, I don't know if they'll do any good, but you have our short swords." Pippin piped in, making me smile.  
"Thank you guys. I think the most known place in America would be Hollywood and that's in Los Angeles, California. It's pretty mixed up in sin, so I think it would make sense for that to be present-day Mordor, too. The only problem is that it's clear across the country. I have no idea how to get there." I told them.  
"Does your time no longer have maps?" Aragorn asked.  
"Yes, we have maps, but I'm not sure where I could find a map to get us to Los Angeles. Wait . . . Oh, nevermind, I can just use Google maps! I can get us from here to my house so that we can use the computer there." I said and I knew that none of them had the slightest clue as to what I was talking about.


	2. The Truth Part II

As I led them to my house, I couldn't help but notice the eerie silence the world had taken on. The cars were one of the oddest parts of it, as they were all just parked in the midst of the road, not a single one with its engine running. I found myself wondering why the cars hadn't gone with the people, just as the schoolbooks and other things had gone with my friends. And why weren't the cars running? Was that just another part of this odd magic, because I honestly could not imagine everyone having time to put their cars into park before being whisked off into the past.

Halfway down Wedgwood Avenue, I saw a minivan that looked suspiciously like the one my mom drove. I looked in the windows as we passed the van. Sure enough, I saw my mom's keys in the ignition and the radio was still on, playing a song by the Beatles.

_But how can that be? _I wondered. There was no one at the station anymore to be playing music. Then a horrible thought dawned on me.

"Gandalf, if all the people in present day Middle-Earth have gone to past Middle-Earth, does that mean all the people in past Middle-Earth came to present day Middle-Earth?" I asked.

"Yes."

"So, there's going to be a possibility of running into Orcs or some other horrid creature on this trip?"

"Yes. But let us hope that our paths do not cross."

A chill went down my spine. It was scary to think that I myself might have to face an Orc or something scarier. I'd seen The Lord of the Rings movies. I'd read the books. I had always thought that it must have taken some real courage to face Orcs and Uraik-hai and Dark Riders and . . . the Enemy. Facing foes like that took courage that I wasn't sure I had.

Once we got to my house, I tried to open the front door but found it locked and it was then that I realized I had no house key with me. Thankfully, however, my parents almost always kept the backdoor unlocked. I dropped my binder and science book in front of the door and told everyone that I'd be right back. I could feel their eyes on me as I walked around the side of the house and began to climb the privacy fence.

Climbing the fence probably would have been an easier task if I spent more of my time working out rather than sitting in my bedroom writing, reading, or drawing maps. But as a result of my lack of physical exercise, I was not very flexible, and ended up toppling not-so-gracefully over the fence. I stood up to examine myself, biting my lip and trying to ignore the seering pain in my right leg. The wood had scratched up the back of my leg pretty good and I cursed myself for wearing shorts today.

I walked over to the back door and discovered that the screen door was locked. I yanked it open, breaking the lock. Oops. I guess I would have to pay Mom back for that one. But at least the back door was unlocked like I knew it would be. I entered the house and went to open the front door, letting in the Fellowship.

"That's an ugly scrape." Merry commented.

"Only to be expected from such a graceful fall." Legolas replied to him.

I rolled my eyes and went and got a washcloth wet with cold water and dabbed it on my scrape. After that was all done, I changed into a pair of jeans and went back to living room and thought to myself how odd it was to see the Fellowship in a modern day setting.

"What now? I don't see any maps around here." Aragorn said.

"The map is on the computer." I told him, momentarily forgetting that they would have no clue what a computer was. I had a feeling we would have many times like this. "I'll show you." I opened up my laptop and went to Google Maps.

"That map looks really strange." Aragorn said.

In the search box I typed Indianapolis, Indiana to Los Angeles, California. But before I could enter, Sam took the laptop from my arms and pressed the backspace button.

"What are you doing?" I asked, furrowing my brows, but Sam didn't answer. He simply typed "the Shire to Mordor" and hit enter. To my astonishment, a map popped up showing the way from Indianapolis to Los Angeles.

"I just wanted to show you this." Sam said bashfully, handing the laptop back to me.

I gaped at him. "Whoa, so . . . hold up a minute. The most known place in America used to be Mordor? Is that really what this means?" I said.

"That is what it seems." Gandalf said quietly.

"Huh. Actually, I think it all makes sense now. Mount Doom must've closed up or something after the Ring was destroyed. Then, when Middle-Earth became myth, some idiots decided that was where Hollywood should be. That's why so many celebrities like Charlie Sheen are so messed up. They've been working in Mordor. It's never been money or drugs. It's where they work." I said. Everyone but Sam seemed confused about what I had just said.

"Yes. That's exactly correct." he said.

Only now did it occur to me that Sam should not know this. "Wait a minute. How do you know that's correct Sam?"

Sam blushed red when everyone looked at him expecting an answer. "When Gandalf told us the story of Rosemary, the girl of all races, I wanted to know more. So I did a lot of studying about the future where I used some magic. I probably went a little further with the stuff than was good for me. I think I went even further with it than even Gandalf would have." Sam looked down at his feet.

"That is very true, Sam. Not even I would dare look into the future. I should punish you for it, but there is a feeling . . . I have a feeling about it that is holding me back from doing so." Gandalf said.

"Please sir. I didn't mean any harm. Really. I just wanted to be prepared in case I ever lived to see this day."

"Well, I can't punish you anyway. There is some force here holding back my powers, although I am unsure of what it is."

"Do you have any idea what it might be?" I asked. Gandalf shook his head. "Well, then, as for traveling, I think we should stay here for the night and set out for Mordor tomorrow."

Gandalf nodded. "I agree, Rosemary, but you shouldn't use the old names for the places here. That map has proven that the land has not forgotten the olden days. If you use the older names too often, places will reshape themselves and history will be made again, and you and all your people will be caught in the midst of it."

"What do you mean, 'History will be made again'?" I asked, quietly, fearing the answer.

"I mean that everything will start back at the beginning. When the Rings of power were forged. That time, Rosemary, was before the Elves chose mortality. So, because of the Elven blood in you, you would live past all that time and even more after the Ring is destroyed. Do you want to live through such horrid times? I know you've read about them and seen them, but do you want to live them?" Gandalf explained.

My mouth went dry. I didn't know what to say. I was frightened by the idea. To think that I might have to live through those scary times just because I misused some names? I couldn't think of anything more unbearable.

"I see what you're saying now Gandalf." I whispered, staring at the floor.

"Gandalf, what do you mean that she's seen the times of the Ring?" Frodo asked.

Gandalf smiled a little. "Would you like to show them what I mean, Rosemary?"

"Certainly. But should I show them one or all three?" I asked, smiling back.

Gandalf told me to show them all three so I had everyone sit down while I went to get the DVDs. I put in The Fellowship of the Ring and sat down with them.

As I watched the movies with them, I listened to their remarks on what was true, what never happened, what they wished had happened, what they wished never happened, and what had been forgotten. It was like that through The Two Towers and The Return of the King also. So for twelve hours, I watched and listened. And for twelve hours, I still couldn't believe what was happening. I wanted to believe it, but it was just way too amazing.

At least, it was for me anyway. I think Sam felt the same way. His brain couldn't comprehend that he had actually lived to see Rosemary, the girl of all races. It felt a little weird being called that. But it made me feel as if I were meant to be on this journey.


End file.
